Turlock Irrigation District’s electric rates are the lowest in the region, according to an annual report that compares irrigation and retail electric rates to other utilities in the region.

Amy Peterson, manager of TID’s rates and risk department, delivered a crisp, six-minute presentation during Tuesday’s TID board of directors meeting that compared the utility against irrigation districts in Merced, Modesto and Sacramento, as well as PG&E.

“We want to know what our customers would pay if they were charged somebody else’s rate,” said Peterson. “So, we use 2025 TID customer data to decide what is an average customer.”

Peterson did point out that if other utilities did the same kinds of comparisons, their numbers might look different.

“If another utility did the same comparison using their customer data, they might come up with a little bit different cents per kilowatt hour,” Peterson said. “Because their customers might be using power a little bit different than our customers.”

Nevertheless, the report showed that TID offers the lowest rate in six categories – domestic, commercial, municipal, farm services, large industrial and bulk power – out of the seven examined. TID finished second – by a fraction of a penny – to Sacramento Municipal Utility District in the category of restricted pumping.

“This is a comparison to three local utilities,” said TID General Manager Brad Koehn. “And when we look more statewide, it doesn’t change these metrics. We are also among the lowest in these comparisons statewide. … It’s really good to see these numbers.”

• Domestic use – Defined by an average monthly usage at 875 kilowatt hours, TID’s rate was 17.68 cents per kilowatt hour, while SMUD charged 19.62 cents. Modesto Irrigation was third at 22.58 cents, followed by Merced Irrigation District at 23.04, and PG&E 38.93. Models for 1.5 times average use and 2 times average use produced the same outcome.
• Commercial service – With an average monthly use of 1,491 kilowatt hours, TID charges 16.26 cents, followed by SMUD (18.78), MID (20.24), MeID (22.30) and PG&E (40.42).
• Farm service – With an average monthly use of 3,232 kilowatt hours, TID’s rate is 15.85, followed by MID (17.20), SMUD (18.06), MeID (19.84), and PG&E (38.01).
• Municipal uses – With an average monthly usage of 35,800 kilowatt hours, TID is lowest at 14.45, followed by MeID (17.18), SMUD (17.83), MID (18.23), and PG&E (32.32).
• Large industrial – With an average monthly use of 339,344 kilowatt hours, TID charges 13.35 cents, followed by MID (15.26), SMUD (15.89), MeID (16.96), and PG&E (24.49).
• Bulk power – With an average monthly use of 7.3 million kilowatt hours, TID leads the way at 11.43 cents, followed by MID (12.92), SMUD (14.27), MeID (16.01), and PG&E (21.74).
• Restricted pumping – This was the only category in which TID didn’t have the lowest rate. With an average monthly usage of 2,036 kilowatt hours, SMUD was lowest at 18.41, followed by TID (18.65), MID (21.37), MeID (33.38), and PG&E (58.94).

On the water side, TID compared its irrigation rates to MID, MeID, Oakdale Irrigation District, and Central California Irrigation District by looking at fixed charges and volumetric charges for 36-inch, 42-inch, and 48-inch allotments.

• 36 inches – OID leads the way at $16.40 per acre foot, followed by CCID ($18), MID ($20.67), TID ($23.23), and MeID ($58).
• 42 inches – OID again has the lowest rate at $14.66, followed by MID ($19.32), TID ($20.37), CCID ($22.03), and MeID ($58.86).
• 48 inches – OID is lowest with $13.35, followed by TID ($18.23), MID ($21.91), and MeID ($56).